Boys’ Basketball
When Rick Bell came to Canon-McMillan six years ago, he was used to winning.

Having spent 13 seasons at the helm of Peters Township, where he turned the program around, he came to Canon-McMillan with similar goals. However, he knew he’d have his work cut out as basketball at the school was in disarray.

“It’s been a tough job, but that’s the kind of job I love,” says Bell, who led the Big Macs to a 10-13 mark a season ago. “The kids here have always been tough and athletic, but they were lacking in skill and basketball IQ. But these kids have worked hard to improve and now they are ready to break through to the next level.”

Seniors Seth Alrutz (6-3), a guard, and center Justin Amrhein (6-8), are a pair of returning starters who will be relied upon for leadership. Both have spent the offseason getting physically stronger as part of well-attended lifting and plyometric programs and will each pose matchup difficulties at their respective positions.

If you looked in the dictionary for the definition of versatility, there just might be a picture of junior Charles Murphy. As a freshman, Murphy started at shooting guard. During his sophomore campaign, while only 6-foot-tall, he was asked to move inside to power forward where his athleticism and tenaciousness made him effective. And this year, he will handle the point guard duty as a full summer of playing the position has him ready for the transition.

“I always say to my kids, don’t be a position, be a player. Charles is a player,” says Bell.

Junior guard Chris Dittmar (6-0) worked his way into the starting lineup midway through last season. A great defender who has worked hard to add more offense to his game in the offseason, he figures to be key in the Big Mac attack.

Senior guard Zach Boyd (6-1), as well as junior forwards Chris Douglas (6-5) and Zane Zebrasky (6-2), all will see big minutes.

Juniors Aaron Wiegle (6-2) and Mike Spartz (6-4), sophomore Matt Pierpont (6-2) and freshman sensation Chad Hagan (6-3) round out a deep squad that is poised to make some noise.

Junior Andre Hayden was expected to make a big impact, however a season-ending knee injury in September has taken him out of the lineup.

While the team has put in the time to improve, they still play in a very difficult section as teams like Mt. Lebanon, Upper St. Clair, Moon, Bethel Park, Baldwin and Peters Township look to stand in the Big Macs’ way.

“Our league is brutal,” confesses Bell, who says his team’s goal is to make the playoffs.

“Last year we lost a lot of really close games. So that proved we’ve learned to compete. The next step is to learn how to win on a consistent basis. That is what we want to do this year.
“I’m very grateful to our administration for their belief and patience in what we’re doing and where we are going. This program is ready to turn the corner and I’m very excited.”

Girls’ Basketball
Last year, the girls’ basketball team went 16-8, setting a new school record for wins in a season. They missed the playoffs by a single game. “We have decided to take a different approach this year,” says third-year head coach Mike Brodnick, referring to his team’s brutal schedule this season.

“If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best,” Brodnick explains. “And that is why we have purposely made our non-section schedule so difficult. We will benefit from that and I expect us to improve.”

Brodnick isn’t concerned with his team’s overall record which is why his team will be pitted against three of the four WPIAL champions from last season as well as the City League champs. “We want to get better. We want to improve,” says Brodnick, who is entering his 24th season of coaching.

“This group is hungry to get back to the playoffs. They don’t mind working hard and they have a great attitude.”

Expectations are very high at Canon-McMillan considering that the team returns four starters and eight returning letterwinners.

Senior Kristen Rheam as well as juniors Cameron Jones, Brittany Taylor and Natasha Williams were all starters a season ago for the record-setting team. Senior letterwinners Stephanie Pierpont, Rachel Quinlan, Maureen Hanlon and junior Lauren Amrhein are also back, giving the team incredible depth.

“This is a special group of girls,” Brodnick notes. “They are a good, close knit, athletic group. One of the things I’m most proud of is the fact that 17 out of 20 girls from last year’s team were on the honor roll. That says a lot about them.”

More than wins and losses, more than personal achievements, Brodnick wants to ensure a positive experience that the girls can take with them when they leave high school.
“I always stress to the girls to enjoy this time of their lives and try to get the most they can out of it because this is a special time for them. They are creating memories that will last a lifetime.”

Swimming and Diving
It was a banner year for the Canon-McMillan swim program last season as the boys’ team captured their first section title in 28 years.

And they did it without having even one senior on the team. “We didn’t lose a single swimmer from last year’s team and we’ve added some talent with some really good freshmen, so I’m very excited about what we can do,” says third-year head coach Jason Ramsey.

“And our girls’ team is also going to be very strong and I look for them to be in the running for a section title this year, too,” notes Ramsey. “If they could do it, it would be the first girls’ title in 30 years.”

While relatively young, Ramsey nevertheless brings a wealth of knowledge to the sport as he was an assistant and later head coach at Penn State-Altoona as well as an undergraduate assistant coach at Penn State’s main campus for a year. “A lot of the techniques I know and use I learned from the head coach at Penn State. It was a great situation for me because I got to work with some great swimmers and coaches and learned a lot about the sport.”

The results have been evident.

Coming back to lead the Big Macs in their quest for a repeat will be senior Andrew Sabol. He was team captain as a junior and is one of the more accomplished breaststrokers in the WPIAL.

Also expected to add leadership will be senior 50 and 100 freestylers Nathan Tovornik and A.J. DiCello, a pair of hard workers who are driven to succeed. “I’m confident that our boys’ team will give everybody in the section a run for their money,” says Ramsey.

Coming back to lead the girls’ team will be sophomore Jennifer Sabol. A talented athlete who can swim just about any event, she is determined to do whatever is best for the team.

Senior Ann Moniodes, who specializes in the 100 butterfly, is a fantastic leader with a lot of spirit and junior Jenny Burke, who swims the 200 and 500 freestyle, is perhaps the most dedicated swimmer on the team as she absolutely lives and breathes the sport.
“They know I set the bar high for them, but as much as I want to see them win a section title, I think they want it even more,” Ramsey acknowledges.

Diving coach Natalie Petro has done a great job as almost all of the divers qualified for WPIALs in 2005, helping round out a program with great depth. “We have had phenomenal support from our administration, particularly our superintendent, Dr. Nick Bayat,” says Ramsey, who feels Canon-McMillan’s pool facility is the best in the WPIAL.

“He comes to a lot of our meets and has been an extremely positive figure for our program and our entire school,” says Ramsey.

Canon-McMillan Wrestling
A section title, finishing second in the WPIAL team competition, not to mention an individual state gold medal for Colin Johnston (112 pounds) and a silver for Matt Ryan (152 pounds), it was business as usual for the juggernaut that is the Canon-McMillan wrestling team.

For decades, the Big Macs have been a force to be reckoned with, not only in the WPIAL, but statewide. The athletes have seemingly become comfortable with a bulls’-eye on their backs as a rich history ensures they are unable to sneak up on anybody.

For seventh-year head coach Chris Mary, there is nothing better than helping cultivate these teams into champions and watching each kid blossom to his full potential.

“It’s all about the kids,” says Mary, who won a state team title in 1982 as a wrestler at Chartiers Houston. “There’s no money in coaching, you do it because you love it. And I love it. I enjoy working with these kids and then watching them succeed.”

Johnston, a junior, went 48-1 last year as he captured the PIAA Class AAA crown.

“He is the first state champion I’ve had since starting here and that was a pretty special moment,” says Mary. “And Matt Ryan did a fantastic job, too. To have two kids in the state finals really says something.”

When the younger students in the district see these varsity wrestlers reaching such lofty heights, they can’t help but be excited, creating a snowball effect. “We have a strong tradition of wrestling here,” says Mary.

“We’ve got great youth and junior high programs which has contributed greatly to our success.”

And this year promises more of the same. Seniors Mike Eberle, Jurdan Maier and Nick Lopez are all battle-tested athletes who bring a lot of big match experience to the team. Juniors Julian Rankin, Christos Pihiou and Tyler Adams as well as sophomore Ronnie Schram also look to be big-time contributors to this year’s team.

While it would be easy to look back at last year, when the team lost the WPIAL title by a single point to Penn-Trafford, Canon-McMillan wants revenge. But Mary is quick to point out that it is a long season.

“We try to take it one match at a time. You can’t go looking down the road too much. We want to just work hard and look to peak at the end of the season.”